Global Megatrends Insight Highlights Series | Page 7

4The new demographic mix
Inclusion is good for business; companies with
more diverse management teams have 19%
higher revenues. Globally, 60% of workers
are in the informal economy , the part of any
economy that is neither taxed nor monitored
by any form of Government. They are less
likely to be able to work remotely and more
likely to be without a financial safety net. They
risk their health if they continue to work and
their financial wellbeing if they don’t. Women
make up the majority of frontline healthcare
workers, giving them greater exposure to the
virus, are more likely to work part-time and
more likely to take on the burden of childcare
when schools are closed. BAME groups
meanwhile, appear to be at greater risk of
severe health problems and are also less
likely to be able to work from home and more
likely to work in the gig economy.
As vulnerable groups decide to continue
shielding efforts, even if a little relaxed,
millions of workers could leave the workforce
taking with them vital skills and knowledge.
Industries primarily made up of low skilled
roles may have a drawn-out struggle to
prosperity combined with the end of
the furlough scheme, resulting in further
redundancies to the ones already seen.
This period is an opportunity for
transformation, in which work can be remote
and flexible, with jobs adapted to the needs
of the individual. Virtual work can also give
less confident or less dominant personalities
a greater chance to have their contributions
seen and valued. It can also emphasize a
wider variety of skills, including listening skills
and supportiveness, for example. Inclusion
and diversity will make companies more
resilient and creative, and leaders have an
unprecedented opportunity to advance
those agendas now, in a way that would not
be possible under ‘business as usual’. The
decisions made now will make long-term
differences to how our economies work. We
should not waste the opportunity.